The butter flavour Diacetyl

As yesterday's post has brought forward some discussion on the way 'flavours and flavourings' are used I thought it was time to include a post on the butter flavour, Diacetyl, found in microwave popcorn. When I read about this years ago when my children were young it wasn't long before I ditched the packet and started popping my own corn! Read on & make your own decision.

It has been known since 1989 that diacetyl vapour is irritating to the throat and lungs and laboratory studies in the 1990s showed that diacetyl vapours were highly toxic to laboratory rats, with effects likened to ‘inhaling acid’ by scientists.
Dr David Michaels, who heads the George Washington University School of Public Health’s Project on Scientific Knowledge and Public Policy, says that diacetyl was approved for food use based on studies that examined consumption, not inhalation.
 ‘There is compelling evidence that breathing diacetyl vapours causes lung disease and there is no evidence of a safe exposure level,’ says Michaels, who has asked the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to remove diacetyl from the list of safe additives.

Meanwhile, the butter flavour diacetyl – used in products such as microwave popcorn – has been linked
to a rare and deadly respiratory disease known as Popcorn Workers Lung. Its victims include young, healthy, non-smoking flavouring industry workers who have been exposed to vapours when diacetyl is heated.
Although our children are not working in such a factory environment I would strongly advise against the consumption of this product.